‘Another huge hit.’ Clovis runs out of time to pull off Fourth of July fireworks show

For the second time in as many years, Clovis’ Freedom Fest fireworks show has been canceled.

The Kiwanis Club of Clovis, which has organized the event since 1997, made the announcement on Tuesday, saying it didn’t have the time needed to order the fireworks, complete the permitting process, line up vendors and organize the use of the facility.

“There are just many working pieces,” event co-chair Eddie DeLeon told The Bee in a phone interview Tuesday.

“You need close to 30 to 60 days.”

That timeline was squeezed because of the state’s coronavirus restrictions. Though Gov. Gavin Newsom has long said the state’s colored Tier System would end Tuesday, organizers in Clovis were unsure exactly how that would affect large gatherings like fireworks shows and if some restrictions would remain in place.

“We waited as long as we could before officially pulling the plug,” said co-chair Bruce Wilson, in a statement announcing the cancellation.

Shaver Lake went through a similar situation in May as it struggled to secure needed permitting from Southern California Edison. The permit was eventually granted pending Fresno County approval and as long as there isn’t any other state or federal prohibitions.

Aside from serving as one of two major fundraisers for Kiwanis Club of Clovis, Freedom Fest is no small economic driver for the city, which estimates the impact of celebration at well over $1 million.

“This is another huge hit to our local economy,” said Shawn Miller, the city’s business development manager.

This all comes at a time when fireworks are under mass scrutiny because of possible fire dangers due to the ongoing drought and a proliferation of illegal fireworks (in much of Fresno, at least) leading up to the Fourth of July. A petition calling on Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer to ban all fireworks (except on designated holidays) has more than 1,000 signatures.

DeLeon is amazed at the amount of illegal fireworks he has seen over the years. Even in the neighborhood surrounding Lamonica Stadium immediately following the Freedom Fest show.

“When I say amazed, I am amazed,” he said, adding emphasis.

But those potential controversies had nothing to do with the cancellation of this year’s event, he said.

“It was 100 percent logistics and timing.”

Freedom Fest is slated to return in 2022.

This story was originally published June 15, 2021 at 11:54 AM.